That was really interesting. I had always assumed that the sheen was due to thin-film interference from a layer of oil on the surface. If TFA is right then it is the ends of severed meat fibers making a diffraction grating, and if that is true then the iridescent meat would be more desirable--sliced across the grain and not smothered in fat.

A friend worked at a local market when we were in high school. Back then there was no deli section - just pre-packaged lunch meat. The stuff never really went bad from all the preservatives in it. The packages would just develop a kinda golden, gelatinous sheen. The owner would pull the outdated packages and place them in a box in the back of the walk-in cooler. About once a month he would have the guys - usually on a Saturday - cut all the packages of lunch meat open and toss them in the meat grinder and then a big mixer into which he would add mayo, pickles, etc and viola - ham salad! Customers would clamor for the stuff and be asking when more was coming when they ran out. My bud says he still can't stand the thought of ham salad / ham spread to this day.

revrendjim:That was really interesting. I had always assumed that the sheen was due to thin-film interference from a layer of oil on the surface. If TFA is right then it is the ends of severed meat fibers making a diffraction grating, and if that is true then the iridescent meat would be more desirable--sliced across the grain and not smothered in fat.

I thought the same thing. That, or the mystical Jew powers that make beef taste like ham.